iPhone 7 vs iPhone 8

The Apple showdown

Apple announced iPhone 8 in September at the brand new Steve Jobs Theatre in Cupertino - one year after iPhone 7 was revealed to the world. The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed that Apple has bucked its own trend of an interim ‘S’ device, going straight from 7 to 8. So, what does that mean - is it a good thing, or a bad thing? Let’s find out…

Design

The Apple smartphone range has always been hailed for its striking design, and iPhone 8 is no different. The 7000-series aluminium that featured on the back of iPhone 7 has been replaced by glass, which not only looks amazing, but lets you wirelessly charge iPhone 8 by placing it on a powermat. The curved corners and edges are still there, and the 3.5mm headphone port is definitely gone for good, with no return on the 2017 iPhones.

The 4.7-inch screen on iPhone 8 is equally as impressive as iPhone 7’s with one important improvement - True Tone tech. The technology automatically adjusts the white balance in your photos, delivering bright, accurate colours full of vibrance. And you get 3D Touch with that too, which adds a whole new level of interaction with your smartphone.

The display is pressure-sensitive, so if for example you’re playing a racing game, you’ll be able to choose just how quick or slow your car moves, using the on-screen accelerator or brake. You can also get different shortcut options from the homescreen, depending on how hard you press on different apps.

Camera

The 12MP camera that appeared on iPhone 7 makes a celebratory return on iPhone 8, but with a better sensor and optical image stabilisation (OIS). The improved sensor lets you take photos quicker and suck more light into the lens for more accurate photos. And the OIS is a great tool for avoiding blur in your shots, leveling out any shake you might have when capturing the moment.

The front-facing camera has remained unchanged at 8MP, and still delivers top quality selfies for all your Snapchat or Instagram needs.

Under the hood

On the inside of iPhone 8 you’ll find one of the biggest improvements - the A11 Bionic chip. Apple says that the hexa-core A11 chip has four efficiency cores that are up to 70% faster than its predecessor’s, and the other two are 25% quicker.

The A11 is pretty much the brains of iPhone 8, responsible for all sorts of stuff - not just speed. It also allows impressive AR to play through the smartphone, which is set to be everyone’s favourite new feature very shortly.

You can buy iPhone 8 from Carphone Warehouse right now. You can also get it on a flexible leasing deal. This is where you rent it - rather than own it - and can then upgrade to the latest phone every year. Best of all, our flexible leasing smartphones aren’t locked to just one network.